January 13, 2022
The summer or burgundy, black truffle, one of the world’s most expensive ingredients, has been successfully cultivated in Ireland, making history after 10 years of waiting.
NEWS
Prof. Paul Thomas (our Managing Director) has appeared on several TV programmes, radio shows and in many written articles. Specific areas of expertise include the biology, cultivation, hunting and cooking methods of the wide range of truffle species. If you would like an interview or require information for an article then please use our contact form and we would be very happy to help.
Below, our most recent news articles are displayed and our back-catalogue is open for browsing.
October 1, 2021
We’ll be returning to Birmingham’s NEC for the Farm Business Innovation show - 10th & 11th November 2021- Birmingham NEC
February 19, 2021
How can I grow white truffles or Tuber magnatum? Can I farm white truffles? Can I grow white truffles in the UK? These are some of the most common questions we’ve been asked over the years and the response has always been that the technology just isn't there yet. Many years ago, we developed a system that resulted in well colonised trees with T. magnatum, but we had never offered these for sale as there are still so many unknowns about its cultivation. Consequently, there was widespread excitement this week when it was reported by a French team that white truffles had been produced from inoculated trees and in just 4.5 years! We thought it would be useful to provide a brief synopsis of this report and the current state of the technology to help would-be cultivators.
February 16, 2021
Within truffe cultivation, some basic parameters are understood. For example, it is widely accepted that to cultivate black winter ‘Périgord’ truffles (Tuber melanosporum) we need a suitable climate, alkaline soils and host trees whose roots have formed mycorrhizal structures with T. melanosporum. Across the globe, these basic principles form the basis of truffle cultivation and an approach that is broadly successful. However, the very basic question of how a truffle forms and what triggers this development is still poorly understood. One of the most basic questions can be summarised in one word that has occupied humans for millennia: sex! In this blog post Prof. Paul Thomas discusses how DNA sequencing technology has led to the discovery that for the winter truffle there are two mating types (or ‘sexes’) and these must come together to form fruiting bodies (truffles).
January 13, 2022
The summer or burgundy, black truffle, one of the world’s most expensive ingredients, has been successfully cultivated in Ireland, making history after 10 years of waiting.
October 1, 2021
We’ll be returning to Birmingham’s NEC for the Farm Business Innovation show - 10th & 11th November 2021- Birmingham NEC
February 19, 2021
How can I grow white truffles or Tuber magnatum? Can I farm white truffles? Can I grow white truffles in the UK? These are some of the most common questions we’ve been asked over the years and the response has always been that the technology just isn't there yet. Many years ago, we developed a system that resulted in well colonised trees with T. magnatum, but we had never offered these for sale as there are still so many unknowns about its cultivation. Consequently, there was widespread excitement this week when it was reported by a French team that white truffles had been produced from inoculated trees and in just 4.5 years! We thought it would be useful to provide a brief synopsis of this report and the current state of the technology to help would-be cultivators.
February 16, 2021
Within truffe cultivation, some basic parameters are understood. For example, it is widely accepted that to cultivate black winter ‘Périgord’ truffles (Tuber melanosporum) we need a suitable climate, alkaline soils and host trees whose roots have formed mycorrhizal structures with T. melanosporum. Across the globe, these basic principles form the basis of truffle cultivation and an approach that is broadly successful. However, the very basic question of how a truffle forms and what triggers this development is still poorly understood. One of the most basic questions can be summarised in one word that has occupied humans for millennia: sex! In this blog post Prof. Paul Thomas discusses how DNA sequencing technology has led to the discovery that for the winter truffle there are two mating types (or ‘sexes’) and these must come together to form fruiting bodies (truffles).